by Alli Kett
Kevin Smith: The fan that now makes films.
The comic book collector that sold his collection to fund his first film, and, brought it back after he made the money back. Smith is the film maker that fans want to be. His snappy dialogue, ability to converse about religion and sexuality in interesting ways, the low budgets and the family environment in which Smith makes films is an interesting microcosm of Hollywood. He is outside the normal system, yet, still draws in major stars such as Johnny Depp as Detective Guy Lapointe in Tusk, released today. In honour of the horror flick that is Tusk, we look at the best of Kevin Smith
Kevin Smith: The fan that now makes films.
The comic book collector that sold his collection to fund his first film, and, brought it back after he made the money back. Smith is the film maker that fans want to be. His snappy dialogue, ability to converse about religion and sexuality in interesting ways, the low budgets and the family environment in which Smith makes films is an interesting microcosm of Hollywood. He is outside the normal system, yet, still draws in major stars such as Johnny Depp as Detective Guy Lapointe in Tusk, released today. In honour of the horror flick that is Tusk, we look at the best of Kevin Smith
Dogma
(1999)
God is Alanis Morissette
“Shit no. Me and Silent Bob are pro-choice. A woman’s body is her own fucking business!”
It’s no wonder that Dogma outraged conservative Christians. However, it’s a film best viewed on its own merit. All Bethany has to do is stop a couple of angels from entering a church in Wisconsin and thus negating all existence. An eclectic cast with Alan Rickman in his pre-Snape glory as the voice of God, with Ben Affleck nailing the sardonic Bartleby, this is a clever satire of religion that somehow doesn’t mock belief itself, Dogma questions religious dogma and introduces us to Buddy Christ. And Buddy Christ, just pops you know....
“Shit no. Me and Silent Bob are pro-choice. A woman’s body is her own fucking business!”
It’s no wonder that Dogma outraged conservative Christians. However, it’s a film best viewed on its own merit. All Bethany has to do is stop a couple of angels from entering a church in Wisconsin and thus negating all existence. An eclectic cast with Alan Rickman in his pre-Snape glory as the voice of God, with Ben Affleck nailing the sardonic Bartleby, this is a clever satire of religion that somehow doesn’t mock belief itself, Dogma questions religious dogma and introduces us to Buddy Christ. And Buddy Christ, just pops you know....
Red State
(2011)
Haven’t heard of Red State? It might be because Smith distributed and marketed it himself. Smith wanted to see if a film could be sold without a studio behind it. It was made on $4million, and made 6.5million, running a profit. Conservatively, it made approximately $2million, though arguably there’s not too many indie filmmakers that could pull off Smith’s distribution model.
Three teenage boys meet a woman online and go to meet her for a wild weekend of sex. Catfished, the teens are kidnapped by an ultra-conservative cult obsessed by punishing sinners. Eventually the FBI gets involved. Michael Parks is electrifying as the cult leader. This is a small, darkly comic film with an ending that questions your beliefs.
Stick it to the system and see Red State
Three teenage boys meet a woman online and go to meet her for a wild weekend of sex. Catfished, the teens are kidnapped by an ultra-conservative cult obsessed by punishing sinners. Eventually the FBI gets involved. Michael Parks is electrifying as the cult leader. This is a small, darkly comic film with an ending that questions your beliefs.
Stick it to the system and see Red State
Chasing Amy
(1997)
Something Smith does well is present a broader spectrum sexuality outside of heterosexual relationships. Smith has previously said the character Jay , one half of the hetero-life partner duo with Silent Bob, Jay is ambisexual. Arguably most of the of gay humour in Smith’s films allows Jay to be repressed in parts of his sexuality. Smith and Mosier have also executively produced Small Town Gay Bar (2006), relating the reality of Scotty Weaver’s murder in Alabama and the difficulty of growing up gay in Bible Belt America.
Chasing Amy follows Holden and Alyssa’s relationship as Alyssa reveals her bisexuality and sexual activity. Silent Bob’s has a substantial speech explaining how he has been Chasing Amy since learning of a girlfriends previous sexual history and not reacting well to this news. We follow a poignant, though immature relationship that navigates modern dating and relationships with witty dialogue and the comic sub-culture embodied by comics Banky and Holden, creators of Bluntman and Chronic
Chasing Amy follows Holden and Alyssa’s relationship as Alyssa reveals her bisexuality and sexual activity. Silent Bob’s has a substantial speech explaining how he has been Chasing Amy since learning of a girlfriends previous sexual history and not reacting well to this news. We follow a poignant, though immature relationship that navigates modern dating and relationships with witty dialogue and the comic sub-culture embodied by comics Banky and Holden, creators of Bluntman and Chronic
Clerks
(1994)
Filmed at Smith’s video store that he was working at outside of trading hours, this was a low-budget affair that was one helleuva debut. The witty dialogue, the raunchy stories, that it was filmed in black and white to save worrying about lighting in the shots. The cast and crew of Clerks started a legacy of working closely with each other up until today. Crew members that worked well together of Clerks have been working with Smith and Mosier since. This longevity is probably no better sign that Smith creates a fun and productive work environment that the audience benefits from.
SModcast
(2007)
SModcasting is hosted by Smith and creative partner, producer to most of Smith’s films, Scott Mosier. Smith is a part owner of a comic book store with writing credits on the comics Daredevil and Green Arrow, Mosier, a producer and part of the Producers branch of the Academy Awards. They lead a SModcasting network, airing the views of a crazy mix of film and comic fans talking about what they stuff they love. They currently are airing 14 regular podcasts, and 5 sporadic podcasts.
The teams at SModcast get excited for other people’s projects and they create their own. That’s right, Tusk orginated on a SModcast. Embrace Tusk for its odd nature and look out for the others in the planner trilogy, Yoga Hosers (2015) and Moose Jaws, it’s like Jaws, but with a moose…
The teams at SModcast get excited for other people’s projects and they create their own. That’s right, Tusk orginated on a SModcast. Embrace Tusk for its odd nature and look out for the others in the planner trilogy, Yoga Hosers (2015) and Moose Jaws, it’s like Jaws, but with a moose…
What Do You Think?
Are these the best movies (or projects) of Kevin Smith?
Or are these more?
Let us know know in the comments below.
Tusk is out on DVD now! Read Liam's review now!
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